1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a motor vehicle sliding roof comprising at least a plate with a front edge and a rear edge, an opening in the roof of the motor vehicle, a guide rail, a front support, a rear support, a level adjustment member, and an actuator, where the plate closes in its frontmost position the opening in the motor vehicle roof and which is at least, at its rear edge, adjustable with respect to the height level by way of rear height-level adjustment member and where the plate can be slid outside of the roof opening into various positions on one side of the motor vehicle roof, and where the sliding roof for a motor vehicle can be moved forward and backward next to its front edge by way of at least a front support in the longitudinal direction of the motor vehicle along a guide rail, and where the plate is supported at at least one rear support, where the rear support includes a rear height-level adjustment member and where the plate is slidable and adjustable in height-level with at least one actuator.
2. Brief Description of the Background of the Invention Including Prior Art
Such a sliding roof for a motor vehicle, where the closable plate can be slid both below but, in particular, above the motor vehicle, is known from the German Patent Application laid open DE-OS 34 04 541. Both the front as well as the rear support of the slidable plate are slid in the longitudinal direction of the motor vehicle according to this known motor vehicle sun roof. In fact, the two sliding motions of the front and of the rear support are performed in these sliding motions at different speeds such that the slidable plate is always simultaneously shifted in horizontal direction and slid upwardly at its rear. The rear support member on the side of the plate is spatially fixed, disposed at the slidable plate and exhibits an inclined plane, which is inclined opposite to the direction of height level adjustment. Thus, the plane is inclined downwardly in the sliding direction in order to give a lifting of the slidable plate in the direction of the sliding motion. Upon use of such an adjustment member, the inclined position of the slidable plate increases continuously with increasing sliding displacement of the plate into a rearward position. In addition it is relatively difficult to effect the height level adjustment upon moving quickly enough and to a sufficient extent out of the closure position in the plane of the motor vehicle roof in order to obtain a collisionfree sliding of the plate. These problems can only be eliminated by employing a very expensive actuating member which, in addition to providing differing rapid forward and rearward motion of the front and of the rear support, also would have to allow for changing displacement speed of the rear support along the displacement path.
In addition, a further motor vehicle sliding roof is known from the German Patent Application laid open DE-OS 31 24 325, where the rear support is mounted spatially fixed and where the height-level adjustment member is a tiltable lever which engages into a peg pin in longitudinal slots of a rail mounted on the side of the plate. Even if two height-level adjustment levers are employed, rattling noises are unavoidable in the various opening positions of such a sliding roof. Furthermore, the expenditure and efforts for achieving a sufficiently quick initial height-level adjustment of the cover plate are fairly big.
In particular, in case of known plates which are slidable above the motor vehicle roof and which are known as "spoiler version", there results the additional problem that the required closing forces have to be provided in a manner as simple as possible. This additional problem is particularly evident in case of so-called retrofit sliding roofs, as well as with other sliding roofs, where the sliding plate has to be pressed in the closure position against one seal and, in particular, against a surrounding seal.
A sliding lifting roof for motor vehicles is known from the German Patent DE-PS 30 20 675, where the cover plate can be positioned upwardly either at its rear edge or after a lowering motion, it can be shifted under the solid roof skin of the motor vehicle in a rearward direction. For this purpose, an intermediate frame is provided below the cover plate, which intermediate frame is tiltably connected to the cover plate at the front cover edge. Upon placing the cover plate into an upwardly inclined position, the intermediate frame remains in its sealing rest position relative to the roof skin, which position the intermediate frame also takes during a closure of the cover plate. Upon a lowering of the cover plate rear edge below the level of the roof skin, in contrast, the intermediate frame is lowered jointly with the cover plate and later also jointly slid with the cover plate in a rearward direction under the solid roof skin. A single drive member is provided for furnishing these courses of motion. This single drive member engages with a bolt into the connecting link guide of the intermediate frame. This link exhibits a guide region parallel to the roof plate and a further guide region that is rearwardly connected thereto and which is inclined upwardly. The guide region parallel to the cover plate allows an unimpeded forward and backward moving of the driven bolt in case of an unchanged position of the intermediate frame. Since a lever, power-transmittingly connected via a further connecting link guide on the side of the cover plate, engages with the cover plate, the forward and backward motion of the driven bolt effects a lifting or, respectively, a lowering of the rear edge of the cover plate in various positions above the fixed roof skin of the motor vehicle, as long as the bolt is disposed in a cover plate parallel region of the connecting link guide of the intermediate frame. If the driven bolt is slid rearwardly via the rear edge of the cover plate parallel part of the guide bar bracket of the intermediate frame, then it thereby lowers, on the one hand, the intermediate frame into a position below its sealing rest/closure position, and thereby bolts, on the other hand, the cover plate together with the intermediate frame. As soon as the driven bolt has reached the rear end of the guide bar bracket at the intermediate frame, a further motion of the driven bolt rearwardly effects a sliding of the cover plate, now lowered at its rear edge, to below the roof skin with the intermediate frame. Thus, the cover plate is actuated both with respect to its vertical motions as well as with respect to its horizontal motion exclusively with one single driven bolt, which engages exclusively at the rear support of the cover plate.
The advantage of this known device is associated, in particular, with the requirement of a special intermediate frame. A sliding of the cover plate rearwardly is only then possible, when the cover plate is slid to below the fixed roof skin of the motor vehicle. However, a sliding of the cover plate rearwardly, while the cover plate is rearwardly above the fixed roof skin, is not possible.
A sliding roof for motor vehicle is known from the British Patent GB-PS 884 344, where the lowering and the sliding of the cover plate to below the fixed position roof top is performed with a spindle extending in the longitudinal direction of the motor vehicle and which is driven via bevel wheels. This drive spindle is spatially fixedly disposed in a frame of the sliding roof and it is rotatably supported. A shoe, which can be moved forward and backward by the drive spindle, carries via a hinge the cover plate in the region of its front edge. The driven shoe can be moved forward and rearward by a certain amount in the closure position of the cover plate without thereby moving the cover plate rearwardly. This motion phase moves a connecting rod merely forward or backward with respect to the cover plate extending in the sliding direction of the cover plate. The connecting rod carries, at its rear end, a sliding block, which is preferably formed as a roller, which can be lifted or, respectively, lowered in this phase of motion along a spatially fixed sliding plane of the cover frame. The connecting rod carries with it the rear edge of the cover plate during this lifting or, respectively, lowering motion. As soon as the lowering process is terminated, the drive shoe rests at a counter support of the cover plate. A further sliding of the drive shoe rearwardly therefore results in a sliding of the cover plate below the fixed roof skin of the motor vehicle, where the sliding element slides together rearwardly at the rear end of the connecting rod, while the spatially fixed sliding plane is maintained for the height-level adjustment of the cover plate in its starting position. This arrangement is associated with the grave and serious disadvantage, that the sliding elements cannot remain engaged together for the rear level adjustment of the cover plate, when and if the cover plate is slid rearwardly. Therefore, a special guide shoe has to assure the desired vertical position of the cover plate upwardly and downwardly in the individual sliding position locations. In addition, the sliding elements of the height level adjustment member have to be brought into engagement with each other at the end of the forward sliding of the cover plate. In addition, this known device is not suitable to lift up this cover plate at its rear edge over the solid roof skin and to slide the cover plate in its lifted up position rearwardly above the solid roof skin of the motor vehicle.
British Patent Application GB 2,164,006A, published Mar. 12, 1986 teaches vehicle sun roofs, where a sliding sun roof for vehicle comprises a closure panel which is slidably mounted on a slide frame assembly. The reference employs a ledge mechanism of the slide handle to enable the panel to be raised pivotally from the slide frame to be unlocked for sliding movement. This reference teaches elements which are generally useful in the construction of sliding sunroofs.
The European Patent Application Number 0134042, which is based on U.S. Patent application 526,787 filed Aug. 26, 1983, and on U.S. Patent application 626,664 filed Jul. 2, 1984 teaches a sliding and venting sunroof. The reference shows the use of a motor and gear works assembly in FIG. 2. The reference employs a rack and pinion gear combination for lifting the rear of the sunroof cover upward into a vent position, and the downward reverse thereof.